A new year brings new health initiatives. As you start to think of your goals for yourself and your employees, pause and think about your workplace wellness offerings! Is employee health a priority for your company? Are there programs and resources in place that set employees up for wellness success?
Workplace wellness is directly correlated with employee engagement and performance. Higher performance is often related to higher employee engagement and higher employee engagement is linked to wellness. So creating a culture of health and wellness is extremely important! And physical, mental, and emotional wellness are equally important.
While there are a variety of initiatives and efforts that may be implemented to promote employee wellness, here are 15 of our favorite workplace wellness ideas for the new year!
1. Offer healthier options in your vending machines and cafeteria to help make healthy choices easier and more accessible.
2. Each month, host a lunch and learn where you invite a health professional to educate employees on different facets of health, like stress management, or nutrition.
3. Encourage employees to take breaks throughout the day so they can focus on themselves and de-stress. Walking, reading, stretching, mediating, or simply unplugging throughout the day can help your employees feel refreshed and more focused.
4. Breakfast is a crucial meal but is often missed as the morning rush takes over. Consider surprising employees with an occasional healthy, catered breakfast.
5. Encourage walking meetings.
6. Be mindful of your employees’ workloads by creating manageable deadlines and, when possible, adjusting timelines for those who may be experiencing burnout.
7. Host fitness challenges. Whether bi-monthly, quarterly, or annually, fitness challenges give your employees a chance to push themselves and work towards a shared goal.
8. Encourage employees to stay hydrated and drink water throughout the day by gifting them with company branded, reusable water bottles.
9. Maintain an attitude of gratitude by giving daily recognition and encouraging shout-outs at meetings.
10. Motivate employees by recognizing and celebrating them when they do a good job.
11. Create a team of volunteer employees to help work on corporate wellness initiatives and the creation of your wellness challenges.
12. Make employee health benefits easily accessible and offer opportunities for employees to ask questions and learn more about their insurance plans and workplace wellness offerings.
13. Promote a culture of support and encouragement getting in the habit of pointing out the good in your team members and encouraging them to do the same. If you see something good in someone, speak up and share it!
14. Provide a safe place for employees with an open-door policy. Whether this is a manager, HR team member, or on-site therapist, employees should be able to feel comfortable to come forward with issues.
15. Fill your space, corners, and desks with greenery to help lower employee’s blood pressure and clean the air!
